In an unexpected bit of good news for American fight fans, Showtime has announced that it will stream Frank Warren’s upcoming December 9th James Degale and Lee Selby IBF title doubleheader on its Youtube page.
James Degale (23-1-1, 14 KOs) will meet American Caleb Truax (28-3-2, 18 KOs) and Lee Selby (25-1, 9 KOs) will fight Eduardo Ramirez (20-0-3, 7 KOs) of Mexico. Unfortunately, these aren’t necessarily great fights. Here is what I had to say when they were announced:
Let’s get this one out of the way. James DeGale (23-1-1, 14 KOs) against Caleb Truax (28-3-2, 18 KOs) is a truly horrible fight. DeGale is arguably the top super middleweight in the world while Truax can be generously called a fringe contender, I guess. The Minnesota based fighter has been soundly trounced by Danny Jacobs and Anthony Dirrell, the latter putting him out in one round just three fights ago. Hell, it was five years ago now, but Truax even managed to lose clearly to late stage Jermain Taylor. This isn’t good at all.
Fortunately, Lee Selby (25-1, 9 KOs) defending against Eduardo Ramirez (20-0-3, 7 KOs) is passable at least. I know few will feel this way, but that is due to the Mexican scene not getting any real exposure internationally. Ramirez, 24, is a solid prospect. Last time out he should have been awarded a significant win over unbeaten prospect Leduan Barthelemy, brother to Rances, but he wasn’t the house fighter and got stuck with a controversial draw. I don’t think he beats Selby, but I do expect him to be competitive all the way through as long as he doesn’t freeze up on the big stage.
Yet, despite my complaints, these fights are certainly better than the other freely available mid-afternoon fight options on December 9th by existing at all. I am very pleased that Showtime is providing a legal and hopefully reliable stream. Their show will even reportedly include top British prospects Anthony Yarde and Daniel Dubois as well. The Box Nation team will have the call at 2:50 PM Eastern.
